As the old saying goes, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, but it’s hard to think of a time when this phrase was pushed to its absolute limits quite like now. This month, an incredibly valuable piece of gaming history was discovered abandoned–and in a sad state of disrepair–in a Northern Irish field. A Sega R360–the mad, cutting-edge, gyroscope-like arcade cabinet that debuted in Japan in late 1990 before being unleashed across the world the following year–has been spotted near the north coast of County Antrim, exposed to the elements and in desperate need of attention. The legendary, 30-year-old machine was found by Lee Peters, a member of Facebook’s 1,000-strong Sega R360 & R360Z Fan Club, who took a series of photos of the sorry-looking R360, which now sits on a farm somewhere north of Belfast. A passionate gamer himself, Peters immediately knew what it was because of his own happy memories of an R360 in the English seaside resort of Blackpool, just over the Irish Sea. The Sega R360 was the world's first commercial game machine with the ability to rotate 360 degrees in all directions–even though its safety features stopped players from turning themselves entirely upside down. While it cost five times more than contemporary arcade machines to play, it became yet another success for its creator, and was full of that peculiar Sega charm. However, fewer than 200 were made, and it only had two games. Most cabinets were fitted with Master System After Burner spin-off G-LOC: Air Battle, while Wing War, which was exclusive to arcade cabinets via the R360 and a two-player sit-down alternative, followed in 1994. It’s believed this particular R360 was the star attraction of an Ulster arcade in the 90s, but after it closed down, it was moved to a local farmer’s shed for storage. Sadly, it was never collected again–perhaps because it’s seven feet tall and weighs 2,200lbs–but in the hands of someone who wasn’t aware of its significance or value, it was subjected to the grim fate of British weather for decades. It’s quite surprising to even see a British R360 outside of England. Most were found in the U.K.’s once-popular SegaWorld arcades, which swept England from 1992 onwards–including the famous landmark attraction in London’s Trocadero, just a stone’s throw away from Piccadilly Circus. Just like Sega itself, these facilities soon stopped providing hardware to the masses, disappearing in the early 2000s. Sadly, this Northern Irish R360 looks unrestorable, but Peters has staked a claim on this incredible piece of gaming history, promising to return with a van and hopefully bring the glory back to one of the world’s most prized, and unique, machines. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattga...-found-abandoned-in-uk-field/?sh=12abdd5e56bd
There's stuff like this all over the globe, unfortunately. Surprised it took this long for this case to be so publicised as word got out in arcade circles a while back about it, but even more surprised the AS-1 simulator (the one Jacko was invoked with) in some Ukraine junkyard that was on Alibaba in recent months hasn't been spread around to begin with. Shame that so many of these get lost.
